An art market for the 21st century

About to complete the first quarter of the 21st century, it is necessary to analyze the art market and the changes it has undergone, as well as to see its evolution, new trends, sales figures, records, the distribution, displacement and the incorporation of new players in a highly complex area. An arduous task influenced by multiple factors that we will try to address in a generalized way.

We can say that the art market, like the financial one, is influenced by crises and geopolitical events. In these 24 years, the global political, economic and social situation has had many ups and downs. The economic crisis of 2008, the wars in Syria, the current wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have drawn a different picture. Also, of course, the political situation, as is the case with Brexit, which strongly deflated one of the world capitals of the art market such as London. Likewise, the terrible pandemic that collapsed the world led to the closure of many galleries and companies linked to this sector, which reconsidered new forms of marketing. The new political and geographical map also generated the incorporation of other countries into the artistic scene such as China, Brazil and India as emerging nations, or the Arab Emirates, as new buyers; facts that have altered a scenario in continuous transformation.

Art in this 21st century has acquired a new concept, seen and treated as an economic value. A financial asset capable of standing in parallel with the flows and oscillations of the speculative markets. Let's not forget that new technologies have also transformed the ways of acquiring works of art. Internat has been an unprecedented revolution for this transaction model, acquiring more and more prominence this online modus operandi, to which all auction houses and galleries have joined without any doubt.

The art market on the Internet can be considered in full expansion, considering that even Amazon, one of the main e-commerce companies, has been selling works of art since 2013. But also the increase in fairs on a global scale has skyrocketed exponentially as a showcase for presentation to the detriment of the classic space of traditional galleries, which have remained as romantic spaces. The generational relay of art has not been fully rewarded by the new generations, who have new incentives in other types of collections. Thus, ancient and modern art, due to the low presence and scarcity of high-level works, has given way to a rise in favor of contemporary art, which is emerging as the new leader of this tendency In the same way, new disciplines, such as photography or video art, have been strongly incorporated in response to the interest of younger collectors in a continuously expanding market.